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Perched at an altitude of more than 1 200m, Balcon de Belledonne was designed by architects Claude Costy and Pascal Häusermann, and built in 1966. Nicknamed “The Whale” by the current owners, the building, with its curves and convolutions, appears to float in midair. -
Perched at an altitude of more than 1 200m, Balcon de Belledonne was designed by architects Claude Costy and Pascal Häusermann, and built in 1966. Nicknamed “The Whale” by the current owners, the building, with its curves and convolutions, appears to float in midair. -
The organic shapes of the complex, originally built to be a yogi’s residence, maximise the indoor volumes in relation to the external surfaces, and reduce the impact on the land by limiting the foundations to a few support points. -
The organic shapes of the complex, originally built to be a yogi’s residence, maximise the indoor volumes in relation to the external surfaces, and reduce the impact on the land by limiting the foundations to a few support points. -
The organic shapes of the complex, originally built to be a yogi’s residence, maximise the indoor volumes in relation to the external surfaces, and reduce the impact on the land by limiting the foundations to a few support points. -
The organic shapes of the complex, originally built to be a yogi’s residence, maximise the indoor volumes in relation to the external surfaces, and reduce the impact on the land by limiting the foundations to a few support points. -
With its striking panorama over the Belledonne mountain range courtesy of a bay window, the lounge area’s organically shaped concrete-shell benches were created by owners Alice Christophe and Scott Lawrimore, and decorated with made-to measure seat cushions by Casamance. The vintage rya-wool rug and ceramic table were thrifted, and the elmwood armchair, chair and stool by Pierre Chapo and ceramic lamp by Olivia Cognet are from 50 Cinquante gallery. -
The dining room features a table custom-made by Scott, and armchairs constructed by Alice and Scott in steel and polycarbonate resin, based on the original architects’ drawings -
Completely redesigned by the couple, the kitchen is super-functional, with a pizza oven, timber countertops coated in polished black concrete and a Smeg oven. -
Completely redesigned by the couple, the kitchen is super-functional, with a pizza oven, timber countertops coated in polished black concrete and a Smeg oven. -
Just off the living area, the terrace overlooks the breathtaking natural setting. The metal balustrades were restored by the owners. The fibre cement armchairs by Willy Guhl and Robert Pansart and steel-and-ceramic coffee table are from 50 Cinquante gallery. -
To set up a guesthouse for architecture lovers that accommodates four people, the owners designed a round bed to fit ingeniously into the original structure without disrupting the flow or volume of the room. The refurbished concrete-shell bench is softened by cushions from Maison de Vacances, and the sidetable carved into the wall supports a metal sculpture by Antoine de St Pierre. -
To set up a guesthouse for architecture lovers that accommodates four people, the owners designed a round bed to fit ingeniously into the original structure without disrupting the flow or volume of the room. The refurbished concrete-shell bench is softened by cushions from Maison de Vacances, and the sidetable carved into the wall supports a metal sculpture by Antoine de St Pierre. -
A glimpse of the entrance and bathroom doors, remade according to the original drawings, with steel structures by metalworker Lucie Revil, and a pigmented fibreglass “skin” fabricated by Marcel Lachat, Jorge Lopes and Scott. -
A bedroom cell installed by Alice and Scott in what used to be the kitchen utilises the concrete-shell shelving as a display space. The original skylight has been restored in fibreglass and steel.
In the five decades since it was built among the meadows of the French Alps, this organic shaped house has had its ups and downs. Fortunately, karma has smiled kindly upon it.
WORDS Steve Smith and Laurence Dougier PRODUCTION Laurence Dougier PHOTOS Nicolas Mathéus
This remarkable house in the French Alps is home to neither the Teletubbies nor space aliens. Originally built in 1966, it was designed by Claude Costy and Pascal Häusermann, who penned a number of similar dwellings during the late ’60s and early ’70s. Conceived as a critique of Modernist radicalism, these bubble or shell houses, as they’re generally referred to, favoured curves and human proportions, and represented the duo’s idea of sculpture-as-architecture that rethought ways of living and methods of building. The couple had met at the Geneva School of Architecture (where Claude was one of the first female graduates); they designed a series of environmentally friendly buildings that promoted harmony between construction and the environment.
Given its aesthetic, it might not surprise you to learn that this particular house was originally commissioned by a yogi, who bought this beautiful parcel of land in the Belledonne mountains with the idea of founding a living and wellness space open to the public, complete with swimming pool, solarium and sauna. Karma has it that his girlfriend came across a magazine article about the Häusermann/Costy designs, and the couple duly contacted the architects, enamoured both with the houses’ design and the economical construction techniques.
Evoking the unobstructed view that the home would afford of the mountain range that surrounded it, the couple named the site Balcon de Belledonne. It was built in just a few months. Employing a technique called “veiled concrete”, the bubble walls were made by spraying concrete onto curved steel bars and wire mesh, with the foundation’s footprint limited to a few support points. This was reputed to save a third of the materials that would be used in conventional construction; more than that, it gave the structure the appearance of a shell adorned with large bay windows.
When the original owner rolled up his mat and sold the house in the ’70s, it briefly became a painting studio, underwent modifications, and was then purchased in 1995 by a couple who made the adjacent old barn their family home. With the bubble house largely untouched, it soon started to deteriorate. It was sold separately to new owners in 2007, before changing hands again in 2021 to those of its current owners, art historians Alice Christophe and Scott Lawrimore.
“I wanted to go back to my family’s birthplace, and we were looking for an old farm – but we were immediately moved by the way this house blends into nature,” says Alice. By now, Balcon de Belledonne was in a sorry state, and it was clear that it required a complete restoration. “We got the keys in June 2021. At first, we didn’t know where to start,” she says. After soliciting the advice of local craftsmen, it was clear that they also had no idea – and so Alice and Scott decided to restore the building themselves.
Fortunately, its original architect Claude Costy was still alive – she’d become a ceramicist, teaching pottery in her own bubble house in Minzier – and was on hand with some helpful advice: “This house is concrete, iron, glass and resin. You just need to repair the cracks, rebuild the forms, sand and paint.”
Upskilling themselves as masons, the couple began to shape concrete into benches, a round bed, the shower, the curves of the sofa; they even made the resin doors for the cupboards. They’ve split the renovation into two phases and have finished the first – the main house. “Our focus was to get back down to the structure of the house itself,” says Scott, “and to go to the very essence of the building’s texture and materiality.”
Phase two – the annexe bubble, originally intended as the yogi’s sauna – will soon be restored as a tiny house. Alice and Scott are renting out the main home to raise the funds needed to finance the restoration.
When it came to fitting out the interior, they struggled to source furniture that was suitable. Time to upskill again, then. They became decorators and furniture designers, making bespoke sofas, sinks and showers in concrete, and doors and cupboards in resin and iron – just as they had been made when the house was first built. “We made life-sized models out of cardboard, and everything was done on a human scale,” says Alice.
They’ve added a little colour – yellow and orange, mostly, to echo the sunlight. A collection of Claude’s ceramics seems to make her presence linger. “We are the custodians of this incredible place,” says Alice. “Our wish is to keep it alive by preserving the link for the public.” | balcondebelledonne.com
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